In addition, please inform, what is the coefficient of expansion of (any one certain type of) soil and what is the temperature of sunshine in summer?
Reply As you must have noted over the years, the Earth surface is neither heating up, nor cooling down, but stays at more or less the same temperature. The heat it receives from the Sun is balanced by the heat sent back to space. Here we ignore periodic changes due to seasons of the year and day-night variations, all of which average out to zero. The process by which heat is returned to space is described in sections S-1, S-1A and S-1B of “From Stargazers to Starships.” It is also the process which drives Earth’s weather and climate. The expansion of soil I don’t know, but in any case, it would be the rock under the soil which affects what happens on the surface. Most soil is more strongly influenced by the water it contains than by heat–and when it dries out, it cracks. 305. About mountains Dear Dr. Stern, I would be very grateful if you answer my following questions in details? • Do mountains stabilize Earth? • How will be the Earth without mountains? Reply What strange questions! y
